First Performance
Written 1599
Publication History
First Quarto 1600
Second Quarto 1602
Third Quarto 1619 (advertised as 1608)
First Folio 1623
Sources
The Famous Victories of Henry the Fifth (anonymous play, printed 1598)
Raphael Holinshed's Chronicles (1577 revised 1587)
Edward Hall's Chronicles (1542)
Background to the Play
Edward III (Henry V's great-grandfather) had seven sons, two of whom are important: Edward the Black Prince and John of Gaunt. The eldest, Edward, died before he could become king. The Black Prince's son, Richard II, did become king. John of Gaunt's son, Henry Bollingbroke, overthrew and killed his cousin, Richard II and became King Henry IV. His son became Henry V.
Shakespeare wrote four plays about this period in history. Richard II concerns the rise of Henry Bollingbroke and the death of Richard II. Henry IV Part 1 is about King Henry IV consolidating his power and the transformation of his son, Prince Hal, from a rebellious young man to a brave knight. Henry IV Part 2 contains the death of Henry IV and Prince Hal's final transformation into King Henry V. At the beginning of Henry V, the situation is of a new king whose father had deposed Richard II.
To the historical material Shakespeare added the characters of Pistol, Gym, Bardolph, Hostess (Mistress Quickly) and Sir John Falstaff. These were the people Prince Hal hung out with in Henry IV 1 & 2.
Links
A synopsis of the play and information about filmed versions.
This is a chart listing the English royal family tree from the 12th century up until Shakespeare's time. It helps show the relations between the various characters in Shakespeare's history plays.
This is the official site of the British Royal family. It has a good history of the Monarchy and images from the Royal Collections. The explanation of the War of the Roses is clear and concise.
This is a brief biography of the historical Henry V.
This is a description of the historical events and how Shakespeare followed or deviated from what is known about the reign of Henry V.
A page of images related to Henry V.
A couple of mostly 19th century paintings of scenes from the play.
A collection of scholarly essays on the play.
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